Technology and the markets are moving at lightning speed. The companies that get it right have the potential to have a clear market leadership role and an employer-of-choice brand, while the ones that fail to embrace automation and technology – in a human-centric way – risk becoming obsolete in a very short time.

Business leaders constantly talk about gathering and mining deeper levels of customer data for insights that can drive incremental revenue opportunities. Less frequently we hear this conversation in the context of an organization’s workforce. In our view, this is perhaps even more important, as insights around efficiency, productivity, talent engagement and satisfaction levels, to name a few, are critical drivers of a firm’s health and potential. These are often the difference between a good and great organization.

So what is AI in a Human Resources Context?

So what is AI in a Human Resources Context?

The workforce will increasingly comprise more millennials –meaning that organizations need to constantly invent new ways to engage their employees as a new generation of workers simply expect cutting-edge technology to support them in their job. This will be the difference in attracting top talent from the market– and harnessing it as a firm’s greatest asset.

AI applied to the world of work presents a number of exciting possibilities, but in simplest terms, it can be viewed as a set of technologies that can gather and analyze large volumes of data, automate and streamline key business processes, (especially repetitive, high-volume ones) and distill unique insights from a number of disparate sources.

A number of key developments are impacting today’s HR function – and this is creating a huge white space in new technologies that can benefit the organization – and worker – be it in the form of greater efficiency gains or simply a happier and more engaged workforce.

Can AI Really Revolutionize the HR Landscape?

Can AI Really Revolutionize the HR Landscape?

AI can be utilized to speed up workflows in many ways and create better experiences for customers and employees. Here are just a few areas we explore in more detail in our whitepaper:

More Efficient Recruitment.

Recruiting teams can realize significant efficiency gains by automating certain processes in their work areas. Resume screening and candidate shortlisting can realize considerable gains when smart technology can be applied to a specific part of the value chain – translating into a vast reduction in time-to-hire, which in turn can yield cost savings and productivity gains in staff.

Companies using AI-powered recruiting software have seen incredible results: Cost-per-screen reduced by 75%, revenue per employee improved by 4%, and turnover decreased by 35%.

Source: Ideal: AI for recruitment

Interactive On-boarding.

Intelligent bots will replace all the basic, mundane tasks that HR staff deal with during the on-boarding process so that new employees have a fully functioning, autonomous HR guide on hand whenever they need it. An on-boarding bot in the form of an “online buddy” can provide voice-controlled assistance and help in query resolution. The tool updates the new joiner on the status of their induction and captures feedback to provide updates to key stakeholders.

Training and Development.

The augmentation of learning and development may be where AI can have the greatest impact for the individual and the organization. Utilizing new capabilities for training and coaching can provide a truly personalized and customized session for employees, in which learning experiences fit each employee’s personal needs, learning style, retention speed and even interests.

Companies who have employed AI-based learning technology have seen a 32% increase in employee productivity and a 43% increase in retention.

Source: George Elfond
CEO, Rallyware workforce engagement platform

A Symbiotic Relationship Between Worker and Technology

A Symbiotic Relationship between Worker and Technology.

AI will inevitably augment HR roles, with machines working together alongside the HR employee. We see this revolution bringing in a world of greater opportunity for organizations and workers alike to achieve more and realize the full possibilities of smart automation.

Simon Tucker

Partner, Energy and Utilities Practice (Europe)

Simon is the Europe energy partner for Infosys Consulting. He has over 15 years of experience running high performing transformation teams in oil and gas globally. Simon has held consulting partner roles at BP, Shell, Cofco and Tullow Oil, running large teams that discover, value and deliver business transformations for both domain (downstream, shipping, trading and upstream) and functional areas. In particular, he led the recent Noble Agri carve out from Noble Group, achieved in just 90 days. Simon started his career at Siemens in Germany, specializing in mergers and acquisitions for the conglomerate, before moving to PWC, IBM and Infosys.

Kishor Gummaraju

Partner, Intelligent Automation Practice (N. America)

Kishor is a managing partner at Infosys Consulting with extensive experience in consulting, innovation, business development and running business operations. He has been responsible for delivering large business transformations and significant innovations in the manufacturing, retail & CPG industry. Kishor focuses on driving operational effectiveness in organizations through digital transformation and automation. He is a seasoned practitioner of design thinking and agile as a means to drive organizational change and business transformation. His current area of focus is driving value leveraging AI and intelligent automation – and scaling its capabilities across our key U.S. clients.

Anmol Jain

Associate Partner, Advisory Practice (APAC)

Anmol leads the firm’s CIO advisory practice for the Asia-Pacific region. He has extensive experience in consulting and business transformation, primarily across the financial services industry. Anmol has deep expertise in defining new business operating models, process optimization, banking transformations and digital ecosystems. He previously worked with sister company Infosys Finacle, and prior to that in roles with Capgemini and Accenture. His current focus area is on driving business value for clients through automation and collaboration by harnessing the potential of AI, cloud and analytics. Anmol is also a pro bono advisor to several start-ups in the region.

Mick Burn

Associate Partner, Enterprise Change Practice (Europe)

Mick is the UK practice lead for Infosys Consulting’s enterprise change practice and a subject matter expert in HR transformation and change management. He has over 18 years of experience in IT, digital, business process outsourcing, process re-engineering and business transformation programs. Mick has deep knowledge and expertise in selling, shaping and delivering large, complex change programs for a range of global clients across the oil & gas, retail, FMCG, manufacturing and pharmaceutical sectors. Prior to joining Infosys Consulting, Mick was a change management specialist at Accenture for over a decade.

Jennifer Hiley

Principal, Disruptive Technologies Practice (Europe)

Jennifer is part of the disruptive technologies practice in London and has over 18 years of experience in digital. She has been a passionate evangelist of the mobile channel since 2005, setting up and running start-up mobile agencies in both the UK and Sydney, Australia. Jennifer joined Infosys Consulting 5 years ago and has since held senior strategic roles in managing design thinking, UX teams and digital transformation programs for some of our top clients. She is also a co-founder of the UK chapter of Women in Wireless, whose mission is to inspire, connect and empower women in digital.

Daniela Statna

Manager, Global Learning & Development

Daniela joined Infosys Consulting 10 years ago and leads our regional learning and development strategy and programs for the firm. She’s responsible for continuous development of training concepts for new hires and experienced staff, as well as for establishing professional processes, services and tools for talent and performance management within the organization. Daniela is a Swiss native, is fluent in three languages and studied at the University of Basel.